Pac-12 basketball: An epic March Meltdown

I tweeted on Friday, after losses by Cal and Oregon State, that the NCAA tournament had been an unmitigated disaster for the Pac-12 (to the extent that basketball tournaments can be deemed unmitigated disasters).

Turned out, that tweet was unmitigatedly premature.

After Utah’s no-show Saturday against Gonzaga, the Pac-12’s performance in March Madness became an unmitigated disaster. Or whatever’s worse than that.

Seven teams in the field.

Five teams out in the first round.

One team out in the second round.

One team left standing for the Sweet 16.

You could make a strong case that no league has performed this poorly in the NCAAs. Ever.

The Hotline research staff – that would be me — spent time Saturday night plowing through the NCAA Tournament record book and found the following:

There have been 25 instances of a conference sending at least seven teams to the NCAAs.

Of those 25, only twice has a conference lost five games in the first round.

One is the 2016 Pac-12.

The other is the 2013 Big East.

But the depths of ignominy is not equal.

The Big East in ’13 got pummeled in the first round but sent three teams to the Elite Eight, two teams to the Final Four and produced the national champ (Louisville).

One could therefore argue that the Pac-12’s performance this month stands as the worst by a conference in NCAA history, given the expectations established by the regular season and the resulting number of bids.

Did we mention that all six losses have come to lower seeds?

Utah’s 23-point loss to Gonzaga, a No. 11, was an abject embarrassment.

Arizona was outplayed from start to finish by Wichita State (also an 11).

Oregon State? Not good enough to beat No. 10 seed VCU.

USC found numerous ways to lose to Providence, and eventually did.

Colorado melted down in the second half against UConn.

Cal lost by double digits to a 13 seed (although at least the Bears had the excuse of playing without their starting backcourt).

While it’s true that seeds aren’t always the best indicator of quality, a bevy of losses to lower seeds, especially double-digit seeds, must be part of the overall calculation for any conference – a portion of the final judgment.

(And let’s not forget the cost associated with all the losses. Or, rather, the unrealized revenue. Every unit, which is defined as a game played, is worth $265,000, paid out over six years.

(Let’s say each team in the conference played to its seed … the 6, 7 and 8s reached the second round … the 3 and 4 reached the Sweet 16 … the 1 reached the Final Four.

(The league would have collected approximately $30 million over the six-year payment cycle, divided equally among the membership.

(Instead, the conference is looking at $15 – $18 million over the timeframe.)

How can the situation be salvaged?

An Oregon run to the Final Four would not drastically alter the narrative — the tournament would still be viewed as a major disappointment — but it sure would help.

The Pac-12 hasn’t placed a team in the Final Four since 2008 (UCLA), and it hasn’t won the national championship since 1997 (Arizona).

If Oregon doesn’t win two more games and the Final Four drought continues, this will undoubtedly be regarded as the Pac-12’s worst-ever showing in the NCAAs.

(Again: That’s because of the expectations, because the league touted itself as the best in the land, and because it sent seven teams into the field.)